Buying Property Abroad

"I had not made any major foreign exchange transactions until I bought a house abroad and knew nothing about the exchange process. My currency dealer at Pure FX talked me through the steps and carried out the transaction exactly as and when promised. Better, I saved several hundred pounds in exchange fees compared to my High Street bank. I shall be using Pure FX for all my future currency transfers."

- R. Masters

If like many of our clients you are buying your dream property overseas, then exchange rates will have a significant impact on your cost.

Once you have committed to your property purchase overseas, the likelihood is you will need to pay a deposit. This will vary country to country but is typically 10% of the asking price. Then the remaining balance would be due on completion, normally a few months later.

Given this time difference between deposit and completion, fluctuating exchange rateswill have an impact on your cost. For example, over a couple of weeks in May 2017 sterling lost over 3% in value against the euro. On a purchase of €150,000 the difference in cost is a whopping £5,000.

Your currency dealer will offer you insight on all the options available and discuss whether it is appropriate to fix your exchange rate. That way your cost is secure regardless of what happens to exchange rates in the meantime.

The earlier you make contact with us the better, in the sense that your currency dealer will be able to talk you through what is happening with exchange rates, and more importantly what is likely to influence exchange rates going forward.